When they entered the "O" Club, the dining area was packed; however the Chaplin noticed three young lieutenants sitting at a table that had two empty chairs. He suggested they join the lieutenants. The mayor said, "That's fine with me; I always enjoy talking to young officers."
The Chaplin asked the lieutenants if they could join them and after they sat down, they listened in on the lieutenants' conversation. At one point, the mayor mentioned that he had lived his whole life in this town and had seen many Air Force officers come and go. He had learned to observe the characteristics of officers and was fairly good at determining the source of their officers' commissions.
The young lieutenants were eager to hear about this and asked the mayor if he could tell them how they each received their commissions. The mayor turned to the lieutenant on his left and said, "You, Sir, went through ROTC."
The lieutenant confirmed that the mayor was correct and asked how he knew. The mayor replied, "Well, through your conversation you convey a strong academic background but you appear to have limited actual military experience."
The mayor then turned to the lieutenant seated on his right and said, "You, Sir, obviously went through Officers Training School (OTS) and have previous enlisted service."
The lieutenant confirmed this was correct and asked the mayor how he had determined this. The mayor said, "Through your conversation, I could tell you had a firm military background and a lot of practical common sense."
The lieutenant seated across from the mayor asked if he had determined his source of commission. The mayor replied, "Yes indeed, Sir, I have. You, Sir, are a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy."
The lieutenant smiled proud and stated that the mayor was correct. He then asked the mayor if he determined that because of his high level of intelligence or his precise military bearing or was it some other superior quality he had acquired while attending the Air Force Academy. The mayor replied that it was actually none of those things. The mayor said, "I simply observed your Academy class ring while you picked your nose."
